Tag: creativity

One of the easiest ways to use essential oils is to make up a spray that can be used on your body or in a room to freshen up and influence the atmosphere. You basically just need a spray bottle, distilled water, and whatever essential oils you want to use. I have a video about it also, or you can just follow along here:I also use a funnel to fill the spray bottles with distilled water, just to be on the safe side, and I always write down what I make in a notebook. And when I say ‘always’ I mean I always intend to write it down, though unfortunately, that doesn’t quite always happen.

It’s best to use dark-colored glass, generally found in brown or blue (I’d love charcoal colored glass bottles~ why doesn’t anyone make those?) but plastic or aluminum will do. If you use clear glass then be sure to store your goodies in a cool, dark place, they will last longer and smell sweeter for it.

That brown glass bottle as well as the aluminum one above hold 4 oz or 1/2 cup of distilled water and the blue glass container holds 6 oz or 3/4 cup. For the smaller containers I’ll add 20-40 drops of essential oils, depending on how strong they are. For the larger bottle, 30-50 drops will do it.

As for deciding which essential oils, it really depends entirely on what you want~ something that smells of flowers (Ylang Ylang and Jasmine?) Or forests (Cedarwood and Pine)? Something anxiety relieving (Lavender and Neroli)? Something to help you remember to write down your essential oil recipes (Rosemary)? There are endless possibilities so it really helps to get to the root of why you are making the spray. I generally have an uplifting daytime spray that I use all day long, and a calming nighttime spray I use before bedtime. That aluminum spray bottle if filled with Thieves oil and distilled water to use for antibacterial/antiviral uses which has been used all too often this wet winter season.

Even though I use the daytime spray more often, I have to put it in the smaller bottle because visually the dark blue bottle reminds me of night and the Lavender and Sandalwood that resides in it, while the brown bottle reminds me of my favorite daytime mixture which is Bergamot and Clary Sage. (Bergamot is in Earl Grey tea so I guess that explains the brown connection.) Together they produce an uplifting spray that is antidepressant and smells incredible good, lightly floral with a hint of citrus-y sunniness.

Another combination I like to use for day use is Rosemary and Orange, which is the combination I use in my diffuser every morning to get my mind jump-started and influence my mood to be a bit sunnier despite the early hour. Rosemary is the classic brain herb especially benefiting memory, while all citrus oils are great mood enhancers and are stimulating thus perfect for morning. They do increase photo-sensitivity so that is something to be aware of when using them. I’ve written before about how cool that actually is because of the whole sun-D-seasonal affected disorder connection, so I won’t repeat myself but it’s worth reflecting on how brilliant nature really is.

Here’s what I made today (and I actually did remember to write these in my notebook already~ thank you Rosemary!)

Day Spray:

4 oz distilled water

20 drops bergamot

20 drops clary sage

And Night Spray:

6 oz distilled water

30 drops lavender

10 drops sandalwood

I should note that many people put alcohol such as vodka in their sprays in an effort to keep the scent around longer. I do not do this because I find the alcohol scent lingers longer than the essential oils and that is not a smell I personally enjoy, but there are plenty of recipes online if you want to experiment with adding alcohol to your sprays.

Have fun experimenting and here’s a link to aura cacia’s recipe page which has all kinds of inspiration on it should you find yourself in a creative mood. And lastly, don’t forget to label what you make~ all it takes is a bit of paper and tape to keep straight what’s for day and what’s for night. And do shake your mixtures to blend them well. Valerie Worwood who has written many best-selling aromatherapy books including The Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy says to rub your palms together with the bottle between your hands for best blending.

Sorry about that weird picture with my hands looking way too large to be human, but it’s a hard thing to describe so I had my son take this pic of me doing it and this is the best we got. Enjoy your herbal crafting!

If you have a child in school these days then you surely have heard of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math.) It’s the big thing right now~ there are STEM schools, STEM measurements, and people compare the STEM-ness of schools when making decisions about where their child will go. Personally, I’m wondering where creativity fits into science, technology, engineering, and math. It seems to me innovation is tied to creativity and we need to foster that in our children just as much as the other things. Not only that, but creativity gives people the space to appreciate art, music, literature, and all the things that still exist beyond our screens. Our kids will be proficient in computers, that’s a given, but do we really want to tie our futures so inseparably with modern technology? Has there really been nothing of use in the world up until the computer chip was invented? What about the natural world? Science seems centered on dissecting it, but what about giving kids the chance to appreciate it? Breathe it. Realize they live in it along with billions of other beings and need to think about that fact. An example of what I’m talking about is the fact our school district does not have art teachers. There are volunteer parents that go in and teach art to classes at most once per month, but often a lot less. Why are we teaching these kids that art in not that important? They have music and PE and library at least once per week, but art for some reason is not valued enough to have at least a weekly class with a trained teacher. This just blows my mind. Kids get so much out of art class and I’m not just referring to the kids who are gifted in it. When I go in and help with art lessons I’m always struck by the highly intellectual students who are astounded they can make something aesthetically pleasing with their own hands, and the hyper-active students who can focus on something that is truly their own, and the quiet students who love being able to work on something as an individual and not be overwhelmed with the constant group activities that are also so vogue in modern education. It gives students a place to pause and consider what art means to them, to recognize every single one of them has some creativity and how good it feels to express it, and to understand it is valuable to work on something purely for aesthetic reasons. These are just a few of things that I see falling out of schools in favor of STEM, and I’d like to propose a post-STEM environment focused on Creativity and Nature. Computers will be integrated in their lives more and more with textbooks changing into tablets, research done on Google, Kindergarteners giving PowerPoint presentations~ that’s all part of the modern world and I’m not trying to stop it, there just needs to be some focus on what goes on outside of a screen and perhaps inside of a head. Of course, I have to bring up the Edible Schoolyard Project as I so often do because it embraces nature and creativity both in such a beautiful balance, and in an increasingly teched-out world kids need to be reminded of the importance of these things. Isn’t education about expanding the mind after all…? It certainly can’t just be about learning how to use a single tool. Our kids are brighter than that and they deserve more.